Star Wars:The Apprentice

Adam stood before Darth Sidious, his master's yellow eyes gleaming in the dimly lit chamber. The air was thick with the stench of burning incense, the faint hum of machinery reverberating in the distance. He had spent four years under Sidious' tutelage, enduring agony, training endlessly, pushing himself to limits he hadn't even known existed. Now, finally, it seemed like his patience had been rewarded. 

A mission. 

A real mission. 

Sidious had summoned him alone, Dooku nowhere to be seen. That meant whatever was about to be discussed was meant *only* for him. 

The Sith Lord stepped forward, his skeletal fingers clasped beneath his robe. His lips curled into a smile, but it was a cold, cruel thing. 

"It is time," Sidious rasped. 

Adam remained silent, waiting. He had learned long ago not to interrupt. 

Sidious' grin widened. "You will hunt down a Jedi." 

Adam's fingers twitched. 

"You will kill them." 

His stomach tightened, but he didn't react. 

"You will not use a blade," Sidious continued. "You will not use a blaster." His voice dipped into a low hiss, a whisper of darkness slithering through the chamber. "You will kill them with the dark side alone." 

Adam's jaw clenched. 

"And when you do," Sidious went on, "you will bring me their lightsaber." 

Adam inhaled slowly, forcing himself to process every word. 

This was it. His true test. 

Sidious had sent him against mercenaries, assassins, even rogue Sith acolytes over the years. But a Jedi? 

That was different. 

That was something else entirely. 

He could still remember his past life, the awe he had felt whenever he saw Jedi in the movies. Their presence, their skill, their unwavering sense of justice. 

Now he had to kill one. 

And he had to do it without a weapon. 

Adam swallowed. 

There was no point in hesitating. 

He had always known this day would come. 

"Who?" His voice was quiet, steady. 

Sidious' smile widened. "Jedi Master Jorra Venn." 

The name meant nothing to him. 

"She is an investigator," Sidious continued. "One of the more curious Jedi. She has been prying into matters that do not concern her." His voice turned into a sneer. "She believes she is close to uncovering something important." 

Adam said nothing. 

"She is not." Sidious chuckled. "You will ensure that." 

Adam exhaled. 

"Where is she?" 

"She resides on Nar Shaddaa," Sidious replied. "A place of filth and chaos. She will not suspect an assassin like you lurking in the shadows." 

Adam nodded slowly. 

Sidious stepped closer, lowering his voice. "Make it painful." 

Adam met his gaze. 

"I will." 

Sidious let out a pleased hum. "Go, my apprentice." 

Adam turned, his mind already racing with possibilities. 

The shuttle ride to Nar Shaddaa was silent. Adam sat in the passenger seat, his hood pulled low over his face. The pilot was one of Sidious' agents, a man who didn't ask questions. 

Good. 

He wasn't in the mood for talking. 

His thoughts swirled as he stared at the flickering lights of hyperspace. 

He was about to murder a Jedi. 

It wasn't the act of killing that unsettled him. He had killed before. Many times. 

It was the fact that, deep down, a part of him still respected the Jedi. 

Or at least, what they were supposed to be. 

Heroes. 

Protectors. 

But the Jedi weren't perfect. They were blinded by their own arrogance, by their dogmatic beliefs. He had spent years listening to Sidious tear them apart, exposing their flaws. 

He knew what they would become. 

He knew what they had allowed to happen in the movies. 

And yet… 

A bitter taste filled his mouth. 

It didn't matter. 

He had no choice. 

Nar Shaddaa was *disgusting*. 

Adam pulled his cloak tighter around himself as he moved through the filthy streets, the air thick with the stench of spice and sweat. 

He hated places like this. 

The people here were broken. Desperate. Predators and prey alike, all struggling to survive. 

It reminded him too much of his own life before Sidious. 

He pushed the thought aside. 

Focus. 

He had already gathered information on Jorra Venn. She was staying in a rundown safehouse on the upper levels, disguised as a common traveler. But she wasn't just hiding—she was searching.

For what, Adam didn't know. 

But it didn't matter. 

She wouldn't live long enough to find it. 

He found her at night. 

Jorra Venn was in her safehouse, alone. The room was dimly lit, scattered with datapads and holoscreens. She was deep in meditation, unaware of his presence. 

Adam's heart pounded. 

This was it. 

He inhaled, reaching out with the dark side. 

The shadows bent around him as he stepped forward, silent as death. 

Jorra's eyes snapped open. 

She moved fast, faster than he expected. 

Her hand shot to her lightsaber, but Adam was quicker. 

He lashed out with the Force, slamming her against the wall. 

Jorra grunted but recovered instantly, her saber igniting with a snap-hiss. The green blade cast a faint glow across her face, revealing sharp, calculating features. 

She wasn't old. Late thirties, maybe. 

Her eyes locked onto him, narrowing. 

"You're no ordinary assassin," she said. Her voice was calm, composed. 

Adam didn't respond. 

She shifted her stance, lightsaber raised. "Who sent you?" 

Adam clenched his fists. 

The air around him vibrated. 

Jorra's eyes flickered with something—realization, maybe. 

And then he attacked. 

He didn't use a weapon. 

He didn't need one. 

The dark side surged through him, crackling like electricity. He lashed out with an invisible force, sending Jorra flying. She twisted midair, landing gracefully. 

Adam lunged. 

She swung her saber, but he knew how Jedi fought. He had studied their forms, memorized their movements his master made sure of that beating it into him. 

She expected a counterattack. A blade meeting hers. 

But Adam wasn't a Jedi. 

He caught her wrist mid-swing, twisting with brutal precision. Bones snapped as he used the dark side to enhance his physical capabilities. 

Jorra gasped, her saber falling from her grasp. 

Adam clenched his other hand into a fist. The Force crushed down on her, pinning her to the floor. 

She struggled, but it was useless. 

Adam exhaled, sweat dripping down his brow. 

"Please…" Jorra's voice was barely above a whisper. 

Adam hesitated. 

A mistake. 

Jorra's eyes shut tightly, and suddenly, a wave of energy blasted outward. 

Adam flew back, slamming into the wall. Pain exploded through his ribs. 

Jorra lunged for her lightsaber. 

Adam's vision blurred as he heard his masters words whispering into his ears.

His anger burned through the pain. 

His fingers curled. 

The Force screamed as Jorra Venn rose into the air, clutching at her throat. 

Adam stood slowly, his breathing ragged. 

Jorra clawed at the invisible grip crushing her windpipe. 

Her eyes locked onto his. 

There was no anger in them. 

No fear. 

Only pity

Something in Adam twisted. 

He hated that look. 

His grip tightened. 

A sickening crack echoed through the room. 

Jorra's body went limp. 

Silence. 

Adam's fingers trembled as he lowered her to the ground. 

He exhaled sharply, his hands shaking. 

He had done it. 

He had killed a Jedi. 

His stomach twisted, but he ignored it. 

He reached down, picking up her lightsaber. 

His heart pounded. 

This was his now. 

His weapon. 

His first step toward true power. 

He turned, stepping into the shadows giving the Jedis body one last glance as he shook his head and walked away.

Sidious would be pleased.

Adam sat alone in the shuttle, the cold metal of Jorra Venn's lightsaber resting in his lap. The hum of the engines filled the silence, but it did nothing to drown out the storm raging in his mind. 

He had killed a Jedi 

Not some low-ranking Padawan, not a weak-willed Jedi Knight. 

A Master. 

A real Jedi. 

And for the first time in years, he felt something he thought had died long ago. 

Regret. 

His fingers curled around the hilt of Jorra's saber, thumb brushing over the activation switch. He didn't ignite it. He couldn't. 

The weight in his chest was unbearable. 

He had wanted to be a Jedi once. 

Not just in his past life—but here, too. 

When he first awoke in this universe, his first thoughts had been of the Jedi. Of their heroism, their strength. 

He had loved them. 

His favorite characters had been Obi-Wan Kenobi,Anakin Skywalker and Tera Sinube, not just because they were powerful, but because they had been good.

Kind. 

Selfless. 

They had stood for something greater than themselves. 

And now? 

Adam exhaled, his breath shaky. 

He had become everything they hated.

A murderer. 

A coward who struck from the shadows. 

The bad guy. 

He knew what the Sith were. He knew the history, the atrocities. He had studied it. He had trained under the very man responsible for the galaxy's greatest tragedies. 

He had no illusions about who he was. 

He wasn't some misunderstood antihero. 

He was the villain. 

The realization settled over him like a suffocating weight. 

Jorra Venn had died looking at him with pity. 

She hadn't begged. She hadn't cursed him. 

She had pitied him. 

And what was worse—she had been right. 

The shuttle jerked slightly as it came out of hyperspace, and Adam forced himself to push the thoughts aside. 

Regret was dangerous. 

Sidious would see it. 

And if he did… 

Adam swallowed. 

He had to bury it. 

At least until he was alone again. 

He clipped Jorra's lightsaber to his belt and stood as the shuttle descended into Coruscant's underbelly. 

Sidious was waiting. 

——

Adam knelt before his master in the darkened chamber, presenting Jorra Venn's lightsaber. 

Sidious took it without a word. 

He turned it over in his skeletal fingers, his lips curling into a pleased smile. 

"You have done well, my apprentice." 

Adam bowed his head, his face carefully blank. 

Sidious traced a clawed finger along the hilt of the saber, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction. "A Jedi Master, felled by your hand alone. You grow stronger." 

Adam said nothing. 

But Sidious was silent for too long. 

Then— 

The smile vanished. 

The air grew colder. 

Adam's stomach twisted. 

Sidious' yellow eyes narrowed as his grin turned to a scowl. 

"Regret," he murmured. 

Adam stiffened. 

Sidious stepped closer, his presence suffocating. 

"You hesitated" 

Adam clenched his jaw. "I—" 

Sidious' hand shot forward. 

Pain exploded in Adam's body. 

He screamed, collapsing onto the cold stone floor as Sith lightning surged through him. Every nerve burned, his muscles spasming as he gasped for air. 

Sidious' voice was soft, almost mocking. 

"You hesitate to kill a Jedi?" Another surge of lightning coursed through Adam, searing every inch of his flesh. "You feel for them?" 

Adam's breath came in ragged gasps, but he forced himself to speak. 

"No—" 

Another blast of agony. 

"Do not lie to me boy." Sidious' voice was sharp, venomous. He crouched beside Adam, his voice dipping into a whisper. 

"You think I cannot feel it? The regret? The weakness?" 

Adam gritted his teeth, every muscle screaming in protest as he fought against the pain. 

He had trained for this. 

He had endured this. 

But this time, Sidious didn't stop. 

What felt like hours passed. 

Then days. 

The torment never ceased. 

Sidious allowed him no food, no rest, no moment of reprieve. 

The lightning would stop just long enough for the pain to settle into his bones before it started again. 

When the lightning wasn't burning him, the Force was crushing him. 

Sidious broke his ribs and healed them just to break them again. 

He starved him until he was delirious, then forced him to fight, to struggle, to crawl. 

Dooku watched in silence. 

Adam barely remembered when it had begun, but he knew when the regret started to die. 

Hate took its place. 

Hate for Sidious. 

Hate for himself. 

Hate for the Jedi. 

By the time Sidious finally stopped, Adam was too weak to move. 

The Sith Lord loomed over him, his expression unreadable. 

"Regret has no place in you," Sidious whispered. "Only pain." 

Adam didn't answer. 

He couldn't. 

He just stared at his master his eyes glowing yellow with the dark side all he felt was hate.

Sidious smiled. 

"You are learning." 

Then, darkness.